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Of critical importance to any of you who use social networking sites such as Facebook and the various applications to which you can subscribe while using them (think Mafia Wars, etc.) is the recent news of the RockYou Database being compromised by hackers.

Occurring on December 4^th, the RockYou Database was infiltrated by the nefarious types who scour the internet for penetrable networks from which sensitive information can be retrieved and used for criminal purposes. Username and passwords were stolen, along with any other information that the RockYou application retrieves upon your use of it.

If it’s any consolation to those of you who might have fallen prey to this theft, none of the usernames and passwords have been published, but there’s nothing stopping the thieves from making them publically available – or selling them, even — when they’re so inclined.

The company behind the RockYou app is largely to blame, carelessly storing the information in an insecure text format. In addition to Facebook, other social networking sites that use the application have seen their users’ information hijacked, including Myspace and email services such as Gmail.

If you use any of these social networking sites, we strongly suggest that you change your password immediately, particularly if you’re someone who uses the same password for every site on which you’re a member.

Geek Choice works hard to stay on top of the latest security issues to help keep your computers safe. If you have any questions about the RockYou hack and how it affects you, or if you’re concerned that your web accounts or computer may have been compromised, give us a call at 1-800-GEEK-HELP (433-5435) and our techs can help.

Sources:
http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/12/14/rockyou-hacked/

http://www.securitywatch.co.uk/2009/12/14/security-problems-with-social-networking-persist/

http://digital.venturebeat.com/2009/12/15/rockyou-hacked-32-million-account-passwords/

http://www.eweekeurope.co.uk/news/personal-data-at-risk-after-sql-flaw-discovered-2750

When booting up your computer, it’s probable that the startup process is weighed down by the inclusion of programs that aren’t needed. They aren’t necessarily programs you don’t use, but they’re not critical when booting your computer up, making their addition to the startup process something of a strain – when all you want to do is have your computer boot up as fast as possible.

There are several good startup managers available, all of which are free. They all work in much the same way, allowing their users to select only those programs that they desire to be included in the startup routine.

The first choice is CCleaner, a utility that isn’t just for managing your startup, its main function being the removal of needless clutter that builds up over the span of your computer’s life. It’s a very helpful tool that cleans your system of the unwanted litter that’s strewn about during your use of the system – cookies, broken registry files, temporary internet files, etc. Included in this tool is an option to remove programs from the startup process. It’s not as customizable as other solutions, restricting your startup management to just the deletion of items from your startup list, but it’s still more than serviceable.

Autoruns is one of the more robust options, giving you control over everything from programs to the various processes that creep their way into your startup process. Singling out everything, this startup manager shines its light on anything accompanying your computer’s startup routine. As thorough as this tool is, its comprehensive features might be too powerful, resulting in an inexperienced user toggling off something that may be critical to the computer’s boot process. While highly recommended, because of its strength, we’d advise users to be cautious when using this.

One program that’s a bit different from your standard startup manager is Startup Delayer, which offers users the ability to delay the startup of an application – rather than terminating it completely. Many of the programs included in your startup routine aren’t necessarily bad, the real problem stemming from having all of them commencing at the same time.  Instead of seeing several programs starting up at once, Startup Delayer allows you to stagger their launch, freeing up your resources when booting the computer up.

No one wants to wait five or ten minutes while their computer boots up, but that’s just what many users experience if they aren’t attentive to what’s occupying their startup list. These tools are just a few of many startup managers that Geek Choice recommends to its users. Should you have any questions, we’re always here to assist you.

With the release of Windows 7, Microsoft has seen something of a resurgence in its standing, delivering on promises that past versions of their operating system has failed to fulfill.  Microsoft offers users the opportunity to download an .ISO image of Windows 7. This is convenient if you have a netbook to which you’d like to install the program.

If you’re looking for a quick and painless way of simply taking that .ISO image and installing it with a thumb drive, which is particularly useful if you want to use Windows 7 with a netbook, the following tool will allow you to do so.

Called the Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool , this utility creates a bootable flash drive – or, if you so choose, a DVD –from the .ISO image, taking just a few steps to have a quick solution for whenever you wish to install Windows 7. For those using a flash drive, you’ll require one with a capacity that’s equal to or greater than 4GB.

This is a quick solution for installing Windows 7 on your netbook, but it’ll also prove helpful if you’re someone who opted to download Windows 7 from Microsoft rather than order the installation DVD.

You can get the Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool here.

When using social networks such as MySpace or Facebook, privacy is of paramount concern, with the details of your private life sensitive enough that you might want to restrict the availability of that information to those people you trust.

Today, Facebook unveiled a revamped privacy interface, affording its users even more control over how their information is filtered to those viewing their pages. With over 350 million users, making it the world’s largest social network, Facebook is hoping this gives its users more flexibility over how they’re able to manage what they share amongst the community.

Per Facebook, the new changes include:

• They’ve removed regional networks, finding that the various communities have become so large as to make its initial purpose inapplicable. Instead, users will be able to share information to friends, family, or publically.
• Users will have a tool that assists in setting up their privacy, though the default settings will automatically block that information which is particularly sensitive.
• No matter what the item you’re sharing, you will now be able to control who sees it, whether it’s loved ones or the public.

If you’re curious about what this means for your account, Facebook explains the changes in more detail here.

If you’re familiar with how the internet works, you know that each website you visit probably has a number of cookies downloaded to your browser. While usually harmless (they’re not spyware or viruses), they can be used for tracking your activity on any given website, becoming something of a nuisance for those of us who value our privacy when traversing the web.

Every internet browser, from Internet explorer to Firefox, offers users the ability to delete cookies that have been collected from the various sites they visit. But the process usually involves several steps, requiring you to select a number of menus before you’re able to even see the cookie you desire the deletion of.

If you use Firefox, there’s a simple way to remove cookies, rendering the process an effortless task that makes cookies accessible with just a dropdown. It’s called the CookieKiller extension, and it’s as easy to use as every other Firefox extension we’ve discussed on the Geek Choice blog. Upon installation, you’re given two means of using the extension.

The first option sees you using the Status bar. When accessing it via a right-click, you’re presented with a menu that lets you Enable Cookie Block, which will block cookies from being collected.

But when you left-click on the icon, you’re given a menu that delineates the cookies associated with your browser. Selecting one of these cookies will see it removed.

Another option of yours is the “context menu,” which can be accessed by right-clicking anywhere on the page.

As seen, once you select the cookie you’d like to delete, it’s gone from the list of available cookies.

However, once you revisit a site, there’s always the chance of the same cookie attaching itself to your browser. To prevent that, you can access the “Preferences” menu, where you’re able to permanently block deleted cookies.

Cookies can be helpful, especially if you’re a frequent visitor of a website that’d like to remain logged in upon each visit. But they can also prove to be an annoyance for those of you who’d rather not have a website tracking your activity. If you’re looking for a way to quickly remove your cookies, the CookieKiller extension is a convenient means of doing so with Firefox.

You can download the CookieKiller extension here.

While email has become the most popular method of communication in this digital age, it’s limited to the internet, requiring a working connection for the delivery of the messages you draft. Still, even in those times when the internet isn’t available, we’d like to be able to read our email and draft new messages in the interim.  The internet isn’t an infallible resource, all of us experiencing outages of service –  at work and home. 

Google just made their Gmail service available offline, a feature that had only existed in their Google Labs, the experimental hub of upcoming services tested out in a beta format. This is a great alternative for those instances when your internet connection isn’t available yet you still find yourself wanting to manage the email in your Gmail account.

When activated, Google downloads a local cache of your current email using Gears, the google service that augments the abilities of your web browser. Once your email has been captured, it remains accessible, no matter if your connection is available or offline. So long as your connection is working, the cache of your email will remain current.

In offline mode, your Gmail features remain available, allowing you to do just what you’d normally do when using the service online – without the ability to send messages, of course. For those messages you want to transmit, all you need to do is “send” them as usual, though they’ll occupy your “outbox” until a connection is available. It’s quite similar to how SMS texts are handled on your smartphone, where the unavailability of services sends your texts into a queue that is emptied upon restoration of service.

With it publically available, the steps required to activate this service are the following:

• Click the “settings” link in the top-right corner of Gmail
• Click the “Offline” tab.
• Select “Enable Offline Mail for this computer.”
• Click “Save Changes” and follow the directions from there.

For a demonstration of how this service, here’s a video that accompanied the Google Lab’s offering:

Because this is still relatively new, there are bound to be some quirks that haven’t yet been ironed out. If you ever have any questions, never hesitate to give us a ring.

Nowadays, PDF files are as ubiquitous as Word documents, oftentimes being the preferred format for documentation in the workforce. They’re easily accessible with Adobe Acrobat Reader and conveniently easy to exchange amongst recipients.

They’re also secure – almost to a fault. 

As I’m sure you’ve experienced, PDFs are usually locked, preventing you from editing or copying the contents. It’s been reported that some people are unable to even print them, unless privileged to do so.  

While these measures are advisable in some instances, where the information is of a sensitive nature, these limitations are usually unnecessary. FreeMyPDF is a free service that does just as its name suggests, freeing you of those restrictions. All you need to do is upload the file to the site, where it then strips the PDF file of any passwords and other restrictions, returning  it to you for all your editing delight.

I should add that this will not work with those PDF files which require a password to just view the file. If such a password has been assigned to the file in question, you will not be able to use this service to render it inactive.

If you’ve ever received a PDF in the office that you’d like to edit or print, there’s a good chance that you aren’t able to. With FreeMyPDF, a simple and easy to use service, you can do exactly that.

If you’d like to use this service, visit their site here.

If you’re a user of Avast, the popular anti-virus program developed by ALWIL software, you should know that a recent definition update (those routine downloads that keep the virus definitions of your anti-virus software current) tagged hundreds of valid files as security threats.

The company promptly responded to the error, summarily releasing a fix just hours later. However, users are still burdened with the task of reinstalling those legitimate files.

Aiding in that effort, Avast has an easy to follow guide that walks you through the process of recovering files incorrectly tagged as threats.

In the event you’re using Avast 5 beta  or Avast 4.8, this solution may not be effective, requiring that you run a fresh reinstall of programs to which the tagged files are linked.

That’s certainly a frustrating solution, one that some users may have no choice but to use.  To date, there is no single solution that works for every user. So, read the instructions provided by Avast. If that works, great — but you may have to reinstall the program if their solution fails to deliver.

If you’re an Avast user and you suspect this bungled update has affected the performance of your computer, call our office. Geek Choice is always here to assist you.

When reading a blog or engaging in a heated discussion with a pack of pseudo-intellectuals on your favorite message board,  we all finding ourselves scratching our head over some of the words we come across.

Should you ever happen upon a word for which you have no definition, or you’re a budding scribe looking for a word to break up the monotony of your latest piece, Google has just rolled out with their own online dictionary. 

Giving both definitions and synonyms, Google dictionary is a database of words that includes definitions culled from other academically certified sources.

If you’re someone who needs to look up a word several times before having its definition singed into your synapses, you can mark a word – with a star – to which you’d like to return or you can look up recent searches.

In the age of the internet, where print is become obsolete in favor of what’s available on the web, this is just another step in our transition to a fully digital world. For the student who’s laboring over a term paper, to the forum denizen looking to impress upon others his masterful vocabulary, Google Dictionary is a welcome resource that’s just a few keystrokes away.

You can visit Google Dictionary here.

Despite its standing as the most popular video streaming site on the internet, hosting  an untold number of user-generated  content, Youtube has come under recent fire for performance issues that would seem to affect slower machines and netbooks (those quasi-laptops that offer some of the same functionality in a leaner version).

While the issues are understandable, considering the amount of bandwidth streaming these videos necessitates, one would think that the company would offer a version of their site that’s more accommodating to those with systems that find all that bandwidth a chore to process.

Well, they appear to be doing just that.

Stripped down to just the basics, Youtube Feather is a recently unveiled beta that takes the fundamental model of this service – streaming videos – and delivers it in a considerably leaner and less onerous form. All that this “lite” version consists of are the videos, with the superfluous clutter we normally find on your standard Youtube page all but peeled away.

Initial reports are very promising, with impressions all leaning towards it being noticeably faster on those slower systems.  Even High Definition videos are included. The beta is open to the public, but you must opt-in to use it. Doing so is easy, requiring that you only press a link to begin using it. If you find that you’d rather opt-out, pressing the same link will return you to the normal Youtube model.  

If you’re someone who loves using this service but often finds the videos are frustratingly choppy, this might be an option through which your Youtube needs are met.

You can join the beta here.